Forever Days
by Nautica7mk
Summary: When the Cullen's left, the unthinkable changed Bella's life forever. Ten years later, fate brings Bella and Edward together again. Also features the rest of the Cullen Coven.
1. Prologue: Renewed Life

**Title**: Forever Days

**Author**: Nadia Mack

**Disclaimer**: I own nothing, which is a tragedy.

**Rated**: K+ (So far at least)

**Summary**: One night, Bella's life changes.

**Author's Notes**: This is more or less a departure to how Bella dealt with the repercussions after Edward left in "New Moon." I took the liberty of taking some ideas from the short-lived show "New Amsterdam." The Cullen's and of course Edward, will play a large part. The first couple of chapters is just me laying the groundwork.

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**Prologue**: Renewed Life

(Bella's POV)

_Gasp!_

When I woke up, I felt disoriented. The erratic beating of my heart could almost be heard against my rushed breaths. I reached for my chest, where my heart lay, and I was relieved that the knife I felt stab into me was no longer there.

It must've been a dream.

A very long and very painful vivid dream.

But then I suddenly noticed my surroundings. With my eyes finally adjusting to the light, I found myself in the forest surrounded by trees. At first I thought I was at the meadow, but upon further observation, the area looked decisively unfamiliar.

Not wanting to be caught by some random passing animal or an excited hunter, I grudgingly lifted myself off the slab of rock that doubled as my bed.

Odd, I didn't even recognize ever seeing it before.

Then I heard it, a quick rustling of leaves.

I spun around, facing my hidden guest. "Who are you?" My voice came off calm, almost confident. I almost laughed out loud at the lie. I was totally terrified. I was lost in a forest with a stranger that was either dangerous or friendly. With my luck, it'd be the former.

The man didn't respond to my question. To be frank, he had no reaction at all. Upon closer scrutiny, he was tall, almost as tall as Jacob, with long jet-black hair wearing clothes centuries out of fashion. Alice had a healthy respect for historical fashion, but the wear and tear this particular man had worn his clothes would give her a heart attack if she could achieve one.

"Are you a Quileute?" They were the only known Native American tribe I knew, and assuming I was still somewhere in Washington, it was a good a start as any.

Yet his reaction remained indifferent.

Did he even speak English?

Before I could get another question in, the man finally moved. It was slow but sure and just as my body's 'Fight and Flight' response kicked in, he held something out from within his long wide weathered sleeves.

My mouth hung open.

It was a knife.

The knife I last remembered was settled in my chest, taking my life.

I gulped.

"How… how did you…" except my words trailed off into bewildered silence.

First he looked into my eyes, and then it fell to my chest. I had the distinct urge to tell him to look elsewhere when I realized that maybe he was trying to tell me something. Besides, he didn't look like he was there to harass me at all. At least I hoped.

So I followed his gaze, and what I saw shocked me.

There was a scar. It was small and thin, about an inch and a half long and from that moment on I realized…

"I should be dead."

The man shook his head and held out the knife, its handle facing me.

"Who are you?"

The man smiled after I reluctantly took the knife, bowing his head towards me as if in reverence. The action stupefied me.

"He's thanking you," a soft voice spoke from behind.

I jerked around and the sight of the girl I disastrously tried to help appeared just a few feet from me. I swallowed hard, believing maybe I was still dreaming. After Edward left, I felt my life stand still and any interest I had before then seemed meaningless without him. I knew it was melodramatic, and as young as I am, it shouldn't have hurt that much.

But my feelings were immovable. It made me walk and talk but not care. Charlie and Jacob had worried, but even their caring patience did little to take me away from my sadness. Irrational. That is what it was. Especially in the face of my of mortality, it took me taking my truck and driving for hours into the night and smack dab in the middle of danger that it made me realize too late how precious life was.

I had sworn, even in my dying breath, that if I lived through this, I would not be so naïve.

"What happened to me?" I finally found the words to say.

"You saved my life," she replied simply and with a grateful smile. "And in return, my elder saved yours."

I turned to face the man once again but he was no longer there. How did he disappear without me noticing? Am I that completely out of it?

"It's all right," the girl said. "He won't harm you. He wanted to make sure that you survived."

"But…" I grasped to find the appropriate words. "Am… am I dead?"

"For a while."

I inhaled deeply. That didn't sound good. "But I'm alive now."

"The practice has never been done before you, at least not in recent centuries."

I blinked, wondering what the hell she was talking about.

"Centuries?"

"My Native American ancestor has given you immortal life, a gift for saving mine."

I blinked again, unable to process her words as clearly as I thought I could. After everything that I've experienced… after everything that I've seen, I had thought nothing would surprise me anymore but this?

"Are you saying what I think your saying?"

"I believe so." Then the girl lifted her head to the skies and spotted an eagle flying by. "I have to go."

My eyes widen. An honest to goodness American Bold Eagle. _Holy cow!_

"Goodbye, friend. And thank you."

I tried to run after her but she was quick. Not vampire quick but she was fast. "Wait!" I called out. "I don't know how any of this works."

She smiled. "You'll learn. You've got time."

I ignored the subtle meaning her words implied, not wanting to think about it too much. I tried following her but by the time she turned to a set of deep tree lines, she was gone and I was alone with nothing but my torn clothes and a knife for company.

I sighed.

* * *

Later that same day, my heart beat wildly, nervously, hoping I can find my way home and after endless hours of wandering, I finally hit the jackpot.

A road.

The image of being one part closer to home had me taking off running, and I stumbled, falling to the earth with a loud thud and a scratch. Apparently, immortality doesn't cure ones own little quirks.

"Ow!" I groaned, expecting the smell of blood on my hands to bring about a fainting spell or worse, nausea. When it didn't come, I turned my palm towards me and was shocked to find the wound healing right before my eyes.

"Oh God"

By the time I found a payphone, my father was frantic with worry. Not wanting to cause an early heart attack, I explained to him how I drove past Washington state lines and ended up with a flat tire in one of the more secluded areas nearby the Pacific Coast highway.

It was a good thing I had the knife with me, when I found my truck, thankfully untouched, it'd be awfully hard explaining to Charlie how I had a flat tire without it.

So after a good verbal thrashing and a very well-deserved grounding, my life (with the exception of the absent Cullens), I finished the final year in Forks High School without anymore incidents.

Well, except one but I could hardly help that.

Laurent came back but I actually had assistance with that one. Jacob, it turns out was a werewolf, and without the abilities that I always assumed came with immortality for myself, I was thankful they finished him off.

I died once already, and I wasn't looking forward to experiencing it again anytime soon.

For everything that's happened to me, I had wished to tell Jacob about what happened, yet I couldn't. It was too personal, and it was a cross to bear that only I can deal with. Even now, in the middle of my economics class of UCLA, I was still hard pressed to admit that I'll never age along with my peers.

Sometimes, I forced myself to not think about it at all.

So in an attempt to forget my silent problems, I threw myself into my studies rarely socializing in the process.

This must be what being a vampire felt like.

After freshmen year ended, I re-evaluated my life. For all intents and purposes, I still had one.

There was this ROTC program in school, and I thought maybe it'll be something to help me be less helpless. Charlie may like that, it's no police academy (thank goodness!) but at least it'll keep him distracted. So imagine my surprise, after I completed the program three years later that I found myself actually enjoying it.

The best thing, of course, is that I'm rarely clumsy as I used to be. It had to be all those hours marching and jogging. My equilibrium has never been better! It was one less thing to worry about.

_Take that_, flat surfaces!

By the time I graduated, as an Officer no less, which surprised me because if there was anything about immortality that had its goods points besides being unable to die, it was the added perk of photographic memory, my specialties ended up in Foreign Affairs.

It was a good deal.

I got to travel. Meet new people. Remembered the ones I needed to and forgot almost immediately the ones I didn't.

Even with all the knowledge I've acquired in surprisingly ten short years, I knew what I was preparing for. In my next life, whenever that may be; the contacts, locations and experience in the field are just some of many assets I would need to move on to my next life.

At the ripe old human age of 28, planning early had annoyingly become a necessity.

I pulled up into the curb, arriving just in time when I quickly spotted the familiar face exiting the double doors of LAX arrival passengers.

Taking a deep breath, I waved, flashing a smile for added measure.

"Bells!"

"Hey dad." I rushed toward him in a heartfelt hug.

"Let me look at you." Charlie held me out with a big old smile on his face, assessing his only child with pride that only a father can give. "It's so good to see you. Dinner's never been the same since you moved out."

I laughed despite my situation. Charlie always knew how to make me smile when I least wanted to.

"I'm sure Sue's treating you well."

Charlie shook his head to the contrary. "She's been feeding me healthy foods," he explained, and then cringed.

"It can't be that bad."

"Easy for you to say. You're still young. You could eat anything."

I almost flinched when he said that.

At least there are upsides to being an immortal. Like werewolves, I could eat whatever I want (except I really don't have an appetite for humans so that's a plus), and I could sleep when I needed sleep. I don't even have to avoid sunlight.

That brings me to the point of living in sunny California. Less chances of running into a vampire I knew.

That would be bad, not to mention very awkward.

And no one questioned the way I look. After a few years quietly adjusting to my new life, I knew I couldn't keep my tastes the same. Loosing the rather tomboyish clothing, I started playing around with different looks. I had to fit in where nobody would notice. Often times, the changes were pretty subtle. A little make up here and there. My hair up instead of down. At one point, I was blonde. I didn't look half-bad. Alice would be proud.

"Is everything all right, Bells?" Charlie asked taking me out of my private thoughts.

"Hmm?"

"You seemed miles away right now. Did I visit at a bad time?" He looked worried. Poor dad, always putting my feelings ahead of his own. I never loved him more than I did right now, which was already pretty big to begin with.

"No," I said sincerely. "I'm glad you're here."

"Good, because I have some good news for you."

"Oh, yeah."

"Sue and I are taking a long overdue vacation. With retirement closing in on me, it'd be nice to get out there and see something new."

I rolled my eyes. "You're not that old, dad."

"But still…"

"So where are you two going?"

"We're thinking Anchorage."

My eyes widened with surprise and I shook my head to make sure I heard him right. "Did you just say Anchorage?" Charlie nodded. "As in Alaska?" He nodded again and I laughed. "Of all the places to… you pick _Alaska_?"

"What's wrong with Alaska? It's a beautiful state."

I extended my hand to feel his forehead. "Nope, no fever."

Charlie dutifully ignored me. "You know how Sue feels about nature; she's always wanted to see the North."

"Then buy a picture book."

But he continued on… "And she was hoping, since you've been so busy theses past few years that you'd come with us. At least for a few days."

"Couldn't you pick somewhere less, I don't know, North American. How about Switzerland or even New Zealand? Now those are the countries you two should Googling."

"Too far, and I don't like long flights."

I groaned. "Aw, dad."

"Please, Bells. It'll mean a lot to the both of us. And you could use the vacation."

"You can't pull that pleading puppy-dog look on me, I'm an adult now," I warned but it was late. I couldn't deny him anything knowing that the older I get, the more ways I have to plan to leave this part of my life. It hurt to even think about it, but if this is what my father wanted, I could only gift him with a yes.

"Fine."

His smile became wide that it could've split his face. "Thanks, Bells."

It could be worse.

* * *

It is worse.

This hadn't been in the plans three months ago when Charlie practically emotionally blackmailed me into joining him and Sue to Anchorage, but there she was, looking every bit as beautiful and radiant as I last saw her.

Alice Cullen.

She looked at me, and I knew things were going to get complicated really soon.

_Darn_.

**To be continued…**


	2. Chapter 1: Stagnant

**Title**: Forever Days

**Author**: Nadia Mack

**Disclaimer**: I own nothing, which is a tragedy.

**Rated**: K+ (So far at least)

**Summary**: One night, Bella's life changes.

**Author's Notes**: Often times when reading fan stories of Edward and Bella that took place in "New Moon", I think Bella's willing forgiveness toward Edward was too quick, especially when we fast forward to a near or distant future when they've been separated for a long time. This is my way of showing how two people can reconnect without the suddenness that get in the way of the character's personal progression. Hope you like it.

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**Chapter 1**: Stagnant

(Edward's POV)

As the lights on the main stage of Perseverance Theatre's only professional company in Juneau turned on, my thoughts drifted to the story that was just told.

Hamlet.

I've seen it a hundred different times, portrayed in a hundred different ways, spoken in multiple different languages and it brought to home just how monumentally pathetic my own lifeless life had gotten ever since I left…

No, I can't go there. Not again.

Medical professionals, Carlisle in this case, knew the emotion that was coursing through my being. Grief, he said it was and I didn't have the strength or compulsion to correct him.

The moment I left _her_ and destroyed what could've been I felt the shock hit me as if I was struck by 10,000 bolts of electricity. She wasn't dead, I would know if she was and the knowledge that she was living her life alive and well was the only thing motivating me to continue this half-less existence.

But then the next stage hit me.

This awareness that I've loss something I couldn't get back. So many times after I carelessly abandoned her I wanted to go back. I never felt more alive and aware of my place on this earth until I met her and now it was gone, while I'm still here, frozen in a body that should've been dead and buried a hundred years ago.

Except it was impossible to go back. For lack of a better phrase, I've made my bed and now I have to sleep in it.

Esme hoped I'd run through these stages as fast as my mind could create music, but as I withdrew myself from my creative outlet, avoided any kind of human contact and began hibernating in my own personal hell, her hope was short-lived.

The others couldn't stand my constant melancholy. Jasper was hard pressed to use his abilities every time he saw me until I forced him to let it be. The ways I've gone through the last ten years have just about taken its toll on the family that cared for me. For a couple of years, Emmett and Rosalie left for some much needed separation from me a few years back, and when they returned, Jasper and Alice moved to Anchorage.

It was just this year that Carlisle and Esme decided to move back to Juneau. The Denali Clan would visit every now and then, but I knew.

Of course I knew.

Just a few seats ahead of me were a couple enjoying post-show adrenaline high. They could care less about the play; they were just happy, content, and so disgustingly gooey-eyed and lovesick that I felt the overwhelming urge to kill them then and there.

For all the Godlike abilities vampires had, there was just as many things we couldn't have, and that bothered me tremendously.

I seriously had to get out of here before I commit senseless violence.

Exiting through the side doors, I was shocked to find Alice waiting for me across the street.

I read her thoughts, more by reflex than intention and the image of the one person I thought of every moment of every day stood out in Alice's mind.

"I thought you were in Anchorage," I said not quite knowing why my his sister was thinking of her now of all times.

"Did you see her?" she said abruptly.

I was taken aback. "What?"

"In my mind. Did you see Bella?"

I nearly winced at the sound of her name. Everyone made a point not to say it out loud anywhere near a five mile radius around me, and I'd hope they learned by now to accept my wishes.

_She's here, Edward. _

Her thoughts snapped my attention into focus.

"No," I said, shaking my head in denial.

"Well she is. I saw her, Edward."

"Why didn't you warn me?" I was too overwhelmed with emotions to think of anything else.

_Because I didn't know._

That's not possible, not with Alice. "That doesn't make any sense."

"She's different somehow," she explained with uncertainty. "I mean, she's Bella and as soon as I saw her I recognized her scent but it's just… it's like, I'm getting all these random spots of images of her but nothing that tells me what she's doing here or anything."

I tried to process her words and sighed against my own weaknesses.

"She's here?"

"Well, not here specifically but she's in Anchorage."

"Did you talk to her?"

"She didn't give me a chance," Alice replied sadly. "She turned and hightailed her way to a group of tourists before I even got a chance to move my legs." Then she became frustrated, and I knew that I wasn't the only one affected by leaving Forks. She lost Bella as much as I have.

"Maybe its better this way," I reasoned half-heartedly. At least now she's learned to walk away.

"No," Alice shook her head, her hair still fashionably short but with the added look of blue streaked hair. "She was as surprised to see me as I was."

Alice could possibly be projecting her own desires to reacquaint herself with Bella but then again, there could be something more. I tried not to dwell on it but the idea of at least taking a look at her was too tempting to ignore.

"You're going to see her, aren't you?"

I closed my eyes knowing that the answer was given to Alice in a vision. "I have to see her, even if she didn't want anything to do with me; I just want to see her."

"I'll come with you," she said, hope laced in her voice.

"I have to do this alone."

Alice, naturally, ignored me. "I live there, too, you know. And you should've seen her outfit!" she exclaimed, her voice perking up. "It's definitely my influence."

I rolled my eyes. "Let's go before we don't find her at all."

* * *

(Bella's POV)

So my day couldn't possibly get any worse. While spending the entire afternoon with Charlie and Sue, I was completely and pathetically distracted by the image of Alice in the courtyard of downtown Anchorage.

Who knew she'd be there?

I sure as hell didn't.

Well, that's not entirely true. I knew they matriculated to Alaska more often than other locations because of the state's conveniently missing sunshine in various locations, but other than the Denali Clan, I honestly didn't expect them to be there, at least not when I chose this week of all the weeks in the last ten years to visit.

I knew my luck would run out sooner or later.

I sighed, hoping Alice was alone but knowing the Cullen's, they're just probably around the corner.

At that moment I felt the hairs on the back of my neck stand up and I had the distinct feeling that I was being watched.

Having honed my awareness when it came to my environment while working for the Military's Foreign Office, it was always better to go with my gut instinct.

Slowly, I turned and despite that I saw no one in my line of vision, somebody was there.

"I don't know who you are, but I'm carrying a .45 if it matters at all."

* * *

(Edward's POV)

_I love you_, I wanted to say, a response that would've been automatic had I not heard specifically what she said. I tried not to think about what that may mean but considering I've gone this far, I might as well take it all the way.

"Hello Bella"

Other than her eyes widening just a fraction, there were no other visible reactions. Even now, after all these years, my inability to read her mind frustrated me.

I stepped further out of the shadows giving me my first real glimpse of the woman that was never far from my thoughts.

She looked… beautiful just as I last remembered, but there was something different about her, especially her eyes.

Experience?

Maturity?

Wisdom?

Perhaps it was all three. Ten years was a long time for a human to change, and I never deluded myself into thinking she'll always remain the same. Unlike vampires, she didn't have that luxury.

So I waited with agonizing patience for any response, but she stood there just as frozen as I was, the steady beat of her heart the only indication that one of them was alive. I don't ever recall seeing her with this much control but then again, I had to remind myself that a decade separated us.

I took a deep breath, her scent intoxicating me. There had been a time long ago where that very smell would charge my senses into animalistic hunger, making me a liability to her personal safety. Letting her go had been the final nail that ended the murderous craving.

What had been his cure became their destruction.

I longed to reclaim that loss just for the opportunity to hold her once more.

"Are you going to stand there all night or are you going to explain why you're following me?"

Bella's voice kicked me out of my intense filled thoughts. She spoke to me.

"I…" but words failed me completely.

"I don't remember you so lacking with words," she observed casually.

"You carry a gun?" I managed to put together. Not the most elegant of ways to start a conversation but Bella always had the ability of surprising me regularly.

She raised her eyebrows before giving a helpless shrug, and had I owned a beating heart, it would've skipped.

"I can't imagine you carrying one," I added in hopes to keep the conversation going no matter how stilted it was.

"You don't think I am."

I eyed her closely, my gaze resting in specific places on her body that would normally have her blushing. I really missed that.

Instead she rolled her eyes. "It's not on me if that's what you're wondering."

"Oh." So she was bluffing.

The silence was so thick between them that the fact that neither of us was making any verbal progress was starting to become ridiculous.

"Can I walk you home?" As soon as the words came out of my mouth, I knew it was a mistake. I left her for this very reason and now, with her presence more dominating now as it ever has before, I was entirely caught in her mercy. I'm too selfish to let her go a second time.

"That…" she paused. "…would be a bad idea."

I frowned, her answer carrying a thousand meanings. Was she here with someone? Is she married? No, unlikely since I saw no wedding ring or any sign of one on her hand. But did that mean she wasn't with anyone? Ugh, I wish I could read her mind so these questions didn't haunt me.

In some masochistic way, it also relieved me to know that some things about her hadn't changed.

"What about coffee?" I offered, keeping my voice as calm as possible.

* * *

(Bella's POV)

"What about coffee?" he offered.

It was one thing to be mentally prepared for a situation like this, but putting it to practice was becoming a lot more difficult than I ever imagined. The moment he said my name, I wanted to put the past where it belonged and throw myself at him as if nothing has changed.

Irrational, I know but some instincts can't be curbed when I want it to.

But there he was, Edward Cullen, asking me for to join him for coffee. Trying to refuse was becoming harder than she thought. He looked as handsome as I remembered.

"I really think we shouldn't," I forced myself to say. The burden of saying the opposite of what I wanted burned me.

To my surprise, he pressed on. "What about another time then?"

My carefully constructed mask of calm broke slightly and I sputtered, "You're really not making this easy are you?"

"I…" he began with hesitation, the look in his eyes clearly conveying what he wanted. "I'm sorry."

Then the speeding rate of my heart betrayed my emotions completely because I knew that was no simple apology. It was a fairly loaded 'I'm sorry' that brought back the pain of watching him walk away from me ten years ago right back into the forefront of my consciousness.

And I was doing so well keeping it hidden too.

Sometimes I thought it would be so much easier to explain my side of things if he could only read my mind, but then I reminded myself that it was my only defense against getting hurt… again. Especially from him.

There had been a time where that hadn't been an issue, where telling him my thoughts and feelings was the truth and neither were mutually exclusive.

Now here they were, tiptoeing around the pain we brought upon ourselves like an elephant parading itself shamelessly in the room.

Not want to prolong this awkwardness any further; I did the one thing I shouldn't have…

"How about tomorrow?"

**To be continued…**


	3. Chapter 2: Chemistry

**Title**: Forever Days

**Author**: Nadia Mack

**Disclaimer**: I own nothing, which is a tragedy.

**Rated**: K+ (So far at least)

**Summary**: One night, Bella's life changes.

**Author's Notes**: Thank you everyone that left comments and the others for taking a look. My summaries are normally (hopefully) catchier but because the plot was still forming in my head, I didn't quite know how I was going to go about it. In addition, Edward will not find out about Bella's own immortality until later. To be honest, she's still trying to deal with that. I will also be slowly introducing the rest of the Cullen's in the next chapters.

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**Chapter 2**: Chemistry

(Bella's POV)

It was ridiculous to feel this nervous, but seeing Edward again and agreeing to see him had been a monumentally bad idea. Mostly because I wasn't entirely sure how it was going to turn out. Alice's visions would help me so much at this moment.

As I walked into the café, a medium size establishment in one of the city's heavier tourist areas, I spotted Edward in a booth on the far end of where I stood. He wore a black crew-neck sweater, likely a Calvin Klein or Armani Casual original and looking just as handsome as I remembered in my dreams.

He stood as I drew closer.

"You came?" He sounded surprised.

"I said I would," I replied doing my best to sound casual. Before I knew it, he was by my side pulling out a chair for me.

Vampire or not, Edward Cullen was a gentleman to the core.

I sat down almost awkwardly, and watched Edward tell the waitress to give us a few minutes before ordering. As usual, the woman tending to us had an utterly infatuated look on her face.

This was going to be harder than I thought. So I commented. "You haven't lost it."

"Excuse me?" he said looking a little bewildered.

"You're still dazzling people."

A faint smile slowly appeared on his lips. "Am I dazzling you right now?" he dared to ask.

"Against my will," I murmured under my breath. An annoying truth but there it is.

His smile didn't disappear. "You're just as I remembered 10 years ago."

"Disappointed?"

"Not at all."

I swallowed a glassful of water, not replying when the sudden lengthy bout of silence encased us. Neither of us seemed inclined to restart the conversation and after five full minutes of complete non-verbal communication, my patience was fast falling first. Wanting to get this conversation over with, I knew one of us had to break the stalemate.

"So what do you want?" I started in a tone I don't usually use, not even when I dealt with foreign dignitaries.

He blinked in surprise by what I would assume was the sound of my harsh tone, and so I attempted to soften it a bit. Repressed anger coming to the surface, I suppose. "I'm sorry. I didn't come to meet with you to start an argument, but this whole thing kind of defeats the purpose of you leaving me in the first place."

His eyes widened in stupor and I bit back a laugh. "You had me fooled, I admit," I continued, elaborating on my earlier words. "I really thought you didn't love me, and I guess a part of me easily accepted that because we were worlds apart." I paused to take a nice deep breath. "The thing about separation, it gave me a lot of time to think. So I realized you just wanted to protect me."

It was stupid of him to try considering what happened a few months afterwards but that was neither here nor there anymore. I understood too well the noble actions that fueled Edward's decisions. It made a large part of who he is. I could never hate him for that, even if I was extremely angry at him for it.

"I never wanted to hurt you," he confessed.

"But you did." Not an accusation, but there was just no getting around that fact.

Edward rested his forearms on the table, locking his fingers tightly together and looking loss for words. At that moment my own longing for him made itself uncomfortably known in the pit of my stomach, bringing to the surface something else I ached to hear.

His voice.

The sound of it always intoxicated me. It calmed and made me feel safe and loved.

"You were always so much more perceptive than I gave you credit for," he admitted softly, guilt ridden all over his face. "You must know that I've never stopped loving you. Even now."

A part of me didn't want to hear it yet another, more traitorous part of my heart felt relieved to hear it spoken out loud. Validation in the truest sense. Understanding truth wasn't nearly enough some times. Hearing it confirmed made a boat load of difference.

I'm beginning to think having this discussion was too soon. So in a lame attempt to evade, I asked, "How's Alice? I saw her the other night."

As I expected, he was taken aback by my 180 degree turn. And like Edward, he was gentlemanly enough to follow the tangent.

"She's doing all right. We're all out of school now. She and Jasper have been living in Anchorage."

"How about the others?"

"They're in Juneau," he answered with a heavy sigh. "Esme redecorated our house out there but I opted for my own place a few miles away." He didn't elaborate further on that particular subject, and I didn't press. "How about you?"

"I'm here with Charlie and Sue."

"Oh." He smiled thoughtfully. "How are they?"

"Happy," I replied simply. "And on vacation for the first time in years, but don't ask me why Alaska. I preferred the Alps but I was outnumbered."

Edward took his own glass of water and held it, swirling it around with no interest at all to drink it. He looked deep in thought; like there's a question he wanted to ask but didn't know how to go about it.

"Are you…" he trailed off not finished.

I may be perceptive but I'm still no mind-reader. "Am I what?" I encouraged.

"Are you… here with anyone else?"

The question dawned on me and I chuckled in response, amused by the quick distress that came over his features. "Is that your subtle way of asking me if I brought a boyfriend?"

He shifted in his seat, jaw clenched with a mixture of curiosity and annoyance. One of the perks of having a private mind against Edward was watching him get frustrated over trying to figure out what I was possibly thinking. It hadn't mattered much before because I always told him the truth; mildly edited maybe but still very much the truth.

"I apologize," he said instead. "I didn't mean to be intrusive. You don't have to answer that."

Damn right, I don't. But really, I couldn't help by derive some perverse satisfaction at seeing his discomfort.

Their waitress interrupted them. "Are you two ready to order?" The woman's eyes fixated on Edward's face, entranced by his otherworldly perfection.

I rolled my eyes. "Um, actually, I'm not hungry." I stood up and handed her the menu, a couple of tens inserted into the folds to compensate for the time spent in their establishment.

The waitress went away without complaint.

I turned back to Edward who sat perfectly still as a statue in his chair. Not wanting to leave in bad terms, I moved to his side and leaned down, my warm lips touching his cold cheek. When I pulled away a second later, I murmured in his ear, "And the answer is no, I don't have a boyfriend." As I turned and walked away from him, I tried not to let the surge of electricity that passed between us when I touched him affect me.

* * *

(Edward's POV)

Chemistry.

We've always had it, and it was defined in a hundred different ways.

It began when their eyes locked for the first time many years ago in a crowded lunchroom. There had been a mystery around her that rivaled even his own family's arrival in Forks, but there had been something more.

Interest…

Then that interest turned rapidly into hunger. The scent of her blood in the air and so near my lungs sang to me, trapping me on a course I couldn't navigate like a moth to a flame. It had nearly driven me out of control.

And when we touched, a spark ignited.

Vampires didn't need to breathe, but when she touched my skin just now even I needed to take a lungful of air. I hadn't expected it, but then I should've known. Everything about Isabella Swann had been unexpected. So I sat frozen in my seat, dumbly watching her walk away from me.

There were so many scenarios I imagined tonight: Accusations, anger, indignation, and a host of other things but while there were bits and pieces of all three, I never expected the nostalgia of memories to come pouring out in our voices. Like a light in my dark existence illuminated up and emotions I've tried hard to bury screamed to the surface.

Bella had loved and lost, but somehow she found away to get stronger and move on with her life. It forced me to look at my own reflection and feel ashamed at my own lack of strength.

It all brought to the surface the one thing I yearned for.

Bella.

It has always been Bella.

_Edward, are you okay?_

I glanced across the room when I caught Alice's thoughts intermixed with hundreds of other noises in the atmosphere. 'Did she see Bella?' I wanted to ask but just the look in my sister's eyes told me she didn't.

The buzzing of so many thoughts were starting to get on my nerves so I dropped a few bills on the table and made a beeline to the door, reaching Alice as they exited the restaurant.

"So how did it go?" Alice asked a little too impatiently.

"I figured you'd know before I did."

"Bella's future isn't as clear to me as it was before."

I frowned, disliking the implication. "That doesn't make any sense. Nothing's changed."

"I'm working on a theory," she chirped, her head tilted to one side. "You know how you can't read her mind at all?" I nodded, it wasn't exactly anything new. "Well, I'm taking a wild guess and say that maybe after we left Forks, she completely closed herself off somehow."

My eyes narrowed, the idea not sitting well with me at all. "That would mean I was responsible."

"I didn't say _that_," she refuted emphatically. "She probably doesn't know it happened. You know, Bella. She keeps her feelings inside." She groaned in own brand of frustration, stomping her foot to the ground, smashing the pavement in the process. "It's like you all these years."

I raised my eyebrows.

"Oh, don't look at me like that, Edward." She rolled her eyes. "You've been so dark, moody and depressed that your future constantly changes. Making it that much harder for me to actually tell your future because I just don't know what you're planning on thinking next."

I looked away, a new set of shame filling the old ones. I fell apart after I left Bella. Living day after day without her had become unbearably monotonous. A chore. At various points and with alarming regularity throughout the years, I imagined a multitude of ways to end my pitiful existence. Some days were just harder than others.

"Ah," Alice sighed heavenly.

Startled, I stared at her. "What?"

She patted my cheek like one would do to a pet. "You're future is getting clearer now." She smiled wide. "So when are you seeing Bella again?"

It took only seeing her mind to see what's got her so happy.

I blinked. "You said you couldn't see her future?"

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean I can't see yours with hers. It's been a long ten years big brother, you better get a move on, and just maybe our lives can get back to normal again."

I shook my head, flabbergasted. "I can't just throw myself back into her life, Alice."

"Why not?" she retorted. "You've done it before."

I growled at her but she merely smiled wider, an image of me saving Bella from Tyler's out-of-control truck swimming through her thoughts. It wasn't the exact scene because she wasn't there to witness it, but it was a fairly believable reenactment.

"You don't play fair."

As usual, she ignored me. "Coming from the guy who broke all the rules in the first place… your words don't hold my weight, brother."

I sighed, completely beaten.

With Bella so close that I could practically feel her every second, I knew I couldn't walk away a second time.

She has and always been my life.

**To be continued…**


	4. Chapter 3: Danger

**Title**: Forever Days

**Author**: Nadia Mack

**Disclaimer**: I own nothing, which is a tragedy.

**Rated**: K+ (So far at least)

**Summary**: One night, Bella's life changes.

**Author's Notes**: I apologize for the delay. I currently don't have Internet at home so I was unable to upload this chapter sooner. I'm switching providers right now so I should be able to be up and running in a week and a half.

For anyone who doesn't understand the "New Amsterdam" connection: "New Amsterdam" was a Fox-based television show that followed a NYPD detective named John Amsterdam. He was a Dutch soldier who immigrated to the new world in the 1600s. After saving the life of a Native Indian girl and being fatally wounded in the process, the tribe's Shaman restored his life giving him immortality. If you count photography memory, immortal life and a high IQ gifts, Amsterdam has no other special powers.

I also just want to reiterate that this is in no way a crossover. I took the idea from the show and used it as a catalyst to jumpstart this '10 Years Later' storyline. This story has nothing to do with John. This is all about Twilight. Bella is still coming to terms with her own immortality while Edward is trying to reconnect with her. I do have plans of introducing certain plot storylines of Eclipse and (possibly, but not sure yet) Breaking Dawn. Obviously, it's going to take place in my current timeline.

Thank you all again for the feedback. If you have any recommendations or ideas just throw it by me. I also don't mind constructive criticism as well; so don't be shy if there's something in particular that's bugging you.

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**Chapter 3**: Danger

(Edward's POV)

Walking alone on Raspberry Road, I made my way to Kincaid Park for some much-needed self-reflection. It was closing in on midnight and I knew from the lack of voices that normally permeated my consciousness with inconsequential chatter, I could finally relax and think by myself without the additional distraction.

Only there was just one distraction I could not ignore even if I tried.

I hadn't seen or heard from Bella since last night, and while I was heavily tempted to track her down and see her, even if she was just sleeping (old habits die hard), I knew it wouldn't earn me any points getting back into her good graces.

Yet fate didn't seem to mind when my sharp vampritic eyes suddenly caught her familiar figure in the distance.

Nobody should be around this time of night, especially Bella, but I knew I'd be fighting a losing battle when it came to her safety. At first, I thought I was just hallucinating. It certainly wouldn't be the first time. But when I focused more thoroughly, her figure and intoxicating scent confirmed my beliefs.

Park hours ended at 10pm but it was a quarter after midnight now and there she was. Forested in rich birch, cottonwood and spruce, Bella stood by herself gazing at something in the sky.

Not wanting to startle her, I let my footsteps be heard.

"Hi," I spoke quietly as soon as I was close enough for her to hear.

She turned and her deep brown eyes bore through me for a moment before she sighed. "Oh. It's you."

I should feel embarrassed or at least slightly annoyed by her reaction but instead, I could not help the mirth that escaped my lips. She constantly surprised me.

"Am I intruding?" I really hope not.

"No, it's fine."

I let out the breath I didn't realize I was holding. Though my kind didn't need air, the years imitating human nuances have become second nature.

We stood next to each other quietly, letting the night encompass us. After a few minutes, I was starting to get edgy, mostly because she seemed a thousand miles away instead of mere inches away from me. If only I knew what she was thinking.

"I love the night," she murmured out-of-the-blue.

"I remember," I said, thankful she finally filled the silence with her voice. "It's the only way for us to see the stars."

It was then she faced me, a genuine smile glittering on her beautiful face. The will power I called forth had been the only thing that kept me from taking her into my arms. It was a struggle in and of itself, I thought irritably.

"How did you know where to find me?" she asked.

"If I didn't have eyes, I'd still find you."

Her lips curved into another smile. Less open but it held a sort of mystery. "That doesn't answer my question," she said.

"Would you believe me if I told you this occurred entirely by chance?" I said by way of retort.

Bella took some time to think over my words. After a brief moment, "All right." Then she added a shrug. "I believe you."

"Is that all it took?"

"You can lie about a lot of things but never something so superficial."

I grinned. "You always understood me better than most." Here was the moment he needed. "May I keep you company?" I shouldn't expect too much knowing that she could easily say no, but when she acquiesced, it nonetheless surprised me.

"How long will you be staying?" I had to ask.

"I'm not sure. Charlie wanted me to stay until their trip was over, but I thought that was a bit too much… since technically… this is supposed to be his and Sue's vacation."

"It sounds as if he doesn't see you often."

I noted with interest the guilty look on her face.

"I've been busy," she explained simply and it left me once again wondering what in the world goes on in her mind.

"With work?" I realize rather belatedly that I didn't even know what she did for a living. Another fact that will no doubt bother me.

"Yeah."

My hope to learn more about her sank when she did not say anything else. Although she has always been intelligent, back in Forks, she always seemed disinterested. I was hard pressed to discover what her hopes and dreams were, or if she had any at all.

If I could just read her mind for just a second. It was massively torturous not knowing things about her or what she was thinking. Knowing the consequences of my actions had created this invisible and insurmountable gulf between us burned whatever soul I had left, and I just didn't know how to penetrate it.

"Are you happy, Bella?" I managed to ask.

She sighed and briefly, I saw the uncertainty in her eyes. Eyes I saw in my every waking moment since I parted from her. It has always been her most expressive feature. They say the eyes were the windows to the soul, and it was truer now than ever before. Though her thoughts were closed off to me, her eyes never were.

"Are you?" I pressed.

"I'm not unhappy," she replied, her deep brown eyes gazed directly into mine before shying away. "I guess I'm somewhere in the middle," she continued. "How about you? Are you happy, Edward?"

"No," I answered with absolutely certainty. "Not for ten years." If my confession affected her at all, she didn't let it show and I have to keep reminding myself that she was no longer the young seventeen year-old-girl I knew. Obviously, the years have changed her but to me, I still saw Bella.

"So you haven't met anyone else either?"

Or maybe my words did affect her just a little bit, and that actually made me ridiculously happy. Maybe even a little smug. Rather pathetic of me, but it couldn't be helped. I'd grasp whatever straws she threw at me.

"None of them are you." I stepped closer, wanting desperately to close the gap between us. "And you're a pretty tough act to follow," I added with a sly but honest smile. It was absurd of her to ever think I could fall for someone else. When a change happens in a Vampire's life, especially one so emotionally altering, it becomes a permanent part of us.

It was forever.

Then she suddenly broke off from me and I could feel the tiny thread of our reconnection shatter. "It's getting late, I should head back to the hotel."

"Don't go," my voice softly pleaded.

"You may think this is easy for me but… it's not. It's actually… uh… a lot harder than I thought," she struggled to explain. "But we've tried this before, and we failed, miserably I might add."

"No," I stubbornly denied. "You tried, Bella. I'm the one who failed."

"If only it was _that_ cut and dry," she said ominously. I suspect that there was a stronger meaning to her words than she was letting on but she left no hint as to what it was. "You have no idea how much I'm fighting you right now."

"Then don't fight it. Stay with me." Been there, done that (fighting against it, I mean). It was dangerous and selfish of me to want her after all that's happened, but I was too far-gone to care.

She shook her head adamantly. "I feel like we're back in high school and we're both saying each other's lines. Aren't I suppose to be the one trying to keep you while your pushing me away for my own good?"

"We were never one to follow tradition." I've tried living without her for the last decade and the thought of the endless years ahead of me without her only reminded me of hell on earth.

"Please… don't…"

I could tell she wanted to touch me, and I wished she just would because I fear any action on my part first would only scare her away. It was only her pride and self-control stopping her.

"Goodnight, Edward."

This was the third time in the last few days that I watched her walk away and it occurred to me; is this how she felt when I turned my back on her and left? This feeling of complete and utter desolation and emptiness? It felt far worse than I ever imagined.

(Bella's POV)

As soon as I was far enough away from him, I walked back to the hotel as fast as I could and as soon as I opened the door to my room, I rushed inside and locked it. My back fell against the adjacent wall and I slid down to the ground as the memories of my recent encounter with Edward replayed in my head.

Tears I promised not to shed for him finally found an escape and it flowed freely.

I didn't lie to him when I said that it was hard. His constant presence left me torn between what was and what could've been. His immortality was his to deal with, and he had a right to choose how to live it even if it cost him what we had, but the eternal life I carried inside of me left a gaping hole that only he could fill.

It should be easy to reach out and take what he offered, but there was a deeper secret between us now that was never there before.

For ten years I've been holding onto a life and a past that's running out of time. Rosalie and to some degree, Edward, was right. I was too young to understand what I was all too willing to let go if given the final choice. At eighteen, it all seemed so much simpler. If becoming a vampire were the only way for me to be with him, then that's the life I would've chosen.

Now I know that life is precious and it's not a gift to just throw away. It was the greatest and most profound lesson that Edward taught me.

In a way, immortality granted me a new outlook on life. It taught me to appreciate nature and the evolution of mankind. Even though I don't have actual combat experience, I've been deployed to a couple of countries acting as diplomatic interference. There were the places that were rife with civil war. In it, I saw the atrocities that humanity was just as capable of committing as the monsters Edward claimed his kind to be.

We were not at all perfect.

And I know I can't stay Isabella Marie Swan forever, and at some point, I'm going to have to say goodbye to my father… my mother… and the rare few people I managed to develop a friendship with. There was also Jacob back in Forks, who I knew I could share my secret with if it became to hard to bear on my own.

But then again, he'll tell me he loves me and that would only intensify the already awkward relationship we have, or lack thereof.

One of the few times I tried to move on beyond Edward's memory resulted only in distancing the truest friend I had. Jacob wanted more and I couldn't give it. Another had too much of my heart and soul that I didn't have the strength to give Jacob what was left. Some day I hope he would forgive me.

I jumped suddenly when I heard the knock on my door and I composed myself the best I could. Assured that I my tears were gone, I tentatively opened my door and was partly relieved to see Charlie standing there.

"Bella?" he said, staring at me with fatherly concern. "I saw your light on so I thought I'd check up on you."

I smiled weakly and opened the door wider, letting him inside.

"I'm not a child anymore, dad," I reminded him in jest.

"I know, I know," he sighed, disgruntled at the fact. After ten years, he's still hung up on playing the protective father. "I hate it when you remind me of that."

"Where's Sue?"

"Sleeping," he answered. "The whole of the animal kingdom could stampede in our room and she'll still be out like a light."

That cheered me up almost immediately and that it also made me grateful for the reprieve from the embarrassing emotional breakdown I just privately had.

"What are you still doing up?" I asked.

He remained quiet and my eyes narrowed with suspicion. "Seriously dad," I lifted my head back and sighed toward the ceiling. "You didn't have to wait up for me, you know. I wasn't kidnapped and I don't trip randomly on solid ground anymore."

"Of course not," he rebuked but still looked decisively guilty. "But sometimes you do."

I rolled my eyes. That was three years ago on a beach with crabs everywhere. It wasn't my fault that certain crustaceans had a habit of appearing out of nowhere, especially when the sun's down. It could've happened to anyone.

"In earnest, though, Bells, are you okay?"

"What makes you think something's wrong?" No matter how blasé Charlie could be about many things, when there's something bothering him, he really knew how to get to the point.

"I don't know," he responded truthfully. "You've been distracted the last couple of days. Whatever it is, you can talk to me, you know. I worry about you, kid."

"I know." I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him on the cheek. "I love you, dad. Trust me, I'm fine."

He made a face, hesitated and then let it go. "Well then, I guess its goodnight to both of us now."

"Goodnight, dad."

"Goodnight, sweetheart and I love you too."

When I was alone again, I thought about Edward. It was impossible not to, especially when he's so near. Would he come here? Sometimes I half expect to catch him watching me sleep, and I certainly would not know how I would react to that if that happened.

I suspect I wouldn't have a problem with it unlike normal people. Even as a mortal I didn't react normal. Edward constantly pointed out my lack of self-preservation. I'm probably just an aberration created at birth and have long accepted it.

Now that I have my emotions finally in control, maybe I'd get some sleep and gain some new perspective in the morning.

Yeah right.

This was going to be a long night.

(Edward's POV)

_Edward?_

I spun around, a hundred yards away Carlisle's figure appeared in my line of sight. By now I'm sure Alice had told the rest of the family about Bella's presence in the city, and Carlisle, my father figure in every way but blood, was checking up on me.

Not wanting to be rude, I crossed the length between us to meet him half way. I just finished hunting and we were secluded enough to not be seen.

_Are you okay?_ Carlisle asked through his thoughts.

A few more steps and we were finally close enough to talk to each other. "Better than before but I'm afraid it won't last long," I admitted fearfully. The mere thought of not seeing Bella ever again constantly haunted me.

"Alice mentioned that you spoke to Bella."

I nodded correctly. "Briefly"

"Is that wise?"

There was no anger or reprobation in Carlisle's voice, just concern. He'd always supported whatever decisions I made on behalf of my life, even when he thought otherwise. He has never hidden anything from me, his mind was free of any prejudice, and it was what made him stand apart from other people of our kind.

"I know it's selfish of me, but I've tried living without her and its unendurable, Carlisle," I said painfully aware of my failings in that regard.

He nodded in understanding. "You have options."

I disregarded those immediately. "Taking her life isn't an option for me." I didn't understand why was I still fighting the idea of making Bella a vampire. "Neither is staying away from her. The only thing left for me to do is to stay with her for however long she wants to be with me."

"So she still feels the same way?"

"I…" I stopped, unsure exactly how Bella felt about me. Our connection was still there, strong as ever yet incredibly fragile at the same time. She kept me at a distance and that left me uncertain about my place in her life. "I think so."

"Before you decide anything, there's something you should see." Carlisle handed me a folded newspaper. Anchorage Daily News it said right on the top. Underneath the heading was a front page story about an ongoing investigation of multiple deaths in the surrounding county and the bodies subsequent disappearances. Two of the six victims were named and so far officials found no link between them other than that the deaths are happening almost at random and so close in time.

I knew right away where the cause stemmed from. "A vampire did this."

"When Alice saw this she had a vision of Victoria."

I blinked. "Victoria." She was James mate. Fast. Strong. And very dangerous. "She's here in Anchorage?"

"Alice is under the very strong impression that she's here to settle a score with Bella."

"What?" Anger began to build inside of me.

"Don't make any rash decisions, Edward. We don't know what's happening yet. Victoria's constantly moving, changing thoughts and directions. It's making it difficult for Alice to see her next move."

It dawned on him. "She's making newborns."

"I believe so. I wouldn't be surprised if a few more names appear in the news in the next few days."

"Why now?" I honestly did not understand. "Why would Victoria come after Bella now, especially with us nearby?" It hardly made sense. "It's been years, and Bella's been out in the open, completely unprotected."

"I'm sorry, Edward. I don't have an answer for that." Carlisle paused, letting his thoughts speak for himself.

_She needs to be warned._

My gut reaction was a resounding _no_ but I knew if I ever had a chance at making it work with Bella again, I have to trust that we could handle this together. So I curbed that natural protective instinct that I always carried for her and buried it away. I've stood on my high horse long enough… this isn't the time for me to be noble; I need to do what's right.

"I'll tell her."

**To be continued…**

**Endnotes**: There are definite parallels in this chapter with Eclipse. Like I mentioned earlier, I'll be incorporating certain aspects of the latter two books to coincide with my timeline. I'm still toying with the idea of eventually tying this story into Breaking Dawn.


	5. Chapter 4: First Confrontation

**Title**: Forever Days

**Author**: Nadia Mack

**Disclaimer**: I own nothing, which is a tragedy.

**Rated**: K+ (So far at least)

**Summary**: One night, Bella's life changes.

**Author's Notes**: So I finally have Internet at home now but with Twilight's release, I got a bit distracted with all the news and video interviews. My apology again for this massive delay in updates. Thank you again for reading my little story and for those who commented. It is always greatly appreciated.

* * *

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**Chapter 4**: First Confrontation

(Edward's POV)

It only took a quick call to Alice to find Bella. According to his psychic sister, the description of the area and building where Bella might be staying was on 8th Avenue. It was mid-afternoon right now, the cloud in the skies draped over the city like a blanket that made the hour feel as if the day was almost over.

I saw The Clarion Suites up ahead and knew by the very distinct scent that was Bella in the air that this is where she was staying. I walked briskly into the establishment, avoiding physical contact with anyone until I reached the check-in counter.

"I'm looking for Isabella Swan," I said to the lady behind the desk, flashing her my best smile.

Her jaw fell at the sight of me, her mind suddenly filling with ridiculous superlatives on behalf of a stranger she didn't even know. The strength it took me to ignore her stereotypical shallow thoughts became a test in futility.

I cleared my throat, hoping she'd snap out of it and tell me what I so fervently wanted to know.

"Isabella Swan," I repeated much to my annoyance.

"Oh," she replied, dazed. "One… uh… moment, sir." The girl, who was only nineteen began typing on her computer while trying to sneak glances my way. "Is she expecting you?"

"Yes," I said casually and with confidence. "Edward Cullen." Bella wasn't expecting me but the last thing I wanted to do was come off as aggressive and invade her space. At least this way, I'm being semi-polite by not charging in headlong into her hotel room to whisk her to safety. I had a feeling she wouldn't like that at all.

_Room 304_.

As soon as the room number appeared in the woman's thoughts, I politely told her that I'd give her a call and wait for her in restaurant across the street. After exiting, I quickly stepped into the alleyway and climbed on the side towards the roof.

It wasn't until I reached her room when I realized that even though her scent lingered, Bella wasn't there.

* * *

(Bella's POV)

When I read the morning paper, I knew my past has finally come knocking. Multiple deaths and missing people's reports littered the front page and I automatically knew what it was.

Vampires.

Not that I ever thought of myself as anything important, but I couldn't just excuse these happenings as a random coincidence, especially since the deaths occurred just after I arrived in Anchorage, not to mention the perverse message that was sent to my room.

After Laurent, I've done a fairly decent job avoiding vampires and it chooses now to pop back into my life.

Someone up high must really not like me.

It's a good thing I was no longer the young naïve girl I once was. I brought provisions just in case. A perk for being former military. I drove a good thirty miles away from the city. After that, I left my rent-a-car in an unused rest stop and took the rest of the way by foot, jogging my ass off far into the trees with nothing but a fairly heavy backpack and a topographic map.

As soon as I found a fairly decent area, I dropped my bag and opened it to remove its contents.

Charlie would have apoplexy if he knew I had these let alone know how to use any of them. Claremore Simulators (I'd have a lot of explaining to do with the U.S. Government if I used the real thing), my own personal gun, and some other cool things. If my gut instinct is right, it was Victoria that's after me. She was the only Vampire I knew who might have it out for me.

Better late than never, I suppose.

Everything was in place by the time night crept up; it wasn't long until my own senses felt attuned to the environment.

Then I heard it. A crack in the branches on the ground that told me I was no longer alone.

"Well, well, well… not very smart of you to be alone." She stepped out of the shadows with a grace that never ceased to amaze me coming from their kind. It seemed such a juxtaposition considering their violent natures. "You're making this too easy for me, Bella."

"It was either this or mass murder." I kept my voice cool and devoid of distraction. "If you wanted to face me, you could've just called."

She sneered, just as I expected her to. It was what James did to lure me to my death, and I figured, it worked out well for me last time.

Victoria circled me, a predator readying to kill its prey. "James would be alive today if it weren't for you." She growled ferociously. "Laurent, too."

It probably wasn't the wise thing to do but I rolled my eyes. "You've got your facts screwed. He tried to kill me first, almost did too. And Laurent, you shouldn't have sent an errand boy to do a scourged woman's job, no matter how misguided."

With a blink of an eye, she lunged at me, her one hand grasping my neck as the rest of my body hit the large tree. At the same time I felt my left shoulder dislocate from the impact.

"I'm going to enjoy killing you."

I grinned ignoring the pain. "Me too." With my free hand, I pressed a device that detonated a nearby explosive. The surprise of the counterattack caused Victoria to let me go but it was too late, the force of the explosion sent us both flying.

I never thought of myself as a masochist. I don't like pain any better than the next person, but that really hurt.

There was blood on me, and it's definitely mine. Damn. That's going to drive Victoria into a frenzy. Not good.

But before Victoria could recover, I reached for my gun and began shooting, ignoring again the pain in my other arm and the nausea of smelling my own blood. Victoria's body healed almost instantaneously but the bullets were strong enough that it was pushing her away. She was like that annoying energizer bunny that kept going and going…

"So the human isn't defenseless," Victoria snickered, her red eyes boring into my brown ones. "But bullets won't stop me."

"I didn't think they would," I said breathing heavily. "I just needed you to back up a bit."

Victoria's eyebrows creased in a momentary bout of confusion. I smiled and I aimed my gun to the ground beside her.

BOOM!

The deafening sounds of the C4's exploding were excruciatingly loud and I braced myself for the oncoming onslaught.

My leg was broken and I was surprised to find myself amused that it happened to be the same leg where James nearly crushed my ankle. This Immortality business is no fun if I can't heal fast, I thought disgruntled.

Once I found my mind cohesive enough to be alert, I didn't find my attacker anywhere. And when I looked around, dragging my broken leg at the same time, I found an arm being cooked in the flames. I knew this wasn't over. Victoria had fled, likely moving onto Plan B, whatever that was.

Now as my own body healed, I was a tiny bit content at the knowledge that she'll be wandering around with one arm missing. Edward never mentioned that his kind re-grew parts.

"Ugh," I groaned. This is the worst vacation I've ever had. At least I didn't have to use the Claymores. They didn't come cheap.

* * *

(Edward's POV)

"Where did you see it?" I asked with trepidation in my voice. I haven't been able to find Bella because her scent seemed to have been planted everywhere. It made it that much harder to find and the thought she could be hurt, or worst… I can't think like that.

"Just up the mountain." Emmett pointed to the direction in the north with Jasper right beside him. "We were patrolling the areas for any newborns when we heard it."

"Two explosions. Multiple gunshots in between. Happened in less than two minutes," Jasper added, his expertise in the field of war coming in handy. I've never been so glad to have my two brothers here with me.

"Where's Alice?"

"She and Rosalie are at the Hotel keeping an eye out for Bella in case we don't find her first."

I nodded, acknowledging that it was the best plan they could come up with in such short time. I only hoped Bella was okay. That's all that mattered to me.

"Let's go," I ordered.

The three of them raced to the area only to find the place deserted.

"Whoa!" Emmett whistled as soon as he saw what we were looking for and I knew he was itching for a fight. "This place looked like a battle zone. Crap! We missed all the action!"

At the same time, Jasper knelt down and scoured the area for clues. "Low end explosives. Strong enough to make an impact but small enough not to do severe damage to the surrounding area." He picked up fallen bullet shells. "Armor piercing rounds?" In the middle of a pile of ash, he lifted another item. A bracelet. "This belonged to Victoria."

"Do you think she's dead?"

"Alice would've told us right away if she was dead," I said frustrated that she was still out there.

"Man, whoever fought that bitch knew what they were doing," Emmett said in awe when the wind changed and the familiar scent of blood filled our senses. Everyone, including myself stood stunned.

"Bella," I whispered, my eyes darting to the source of her smell. I reached a spot in the ground and my eyes could see the small pool of blood on the ground. "No." I shook my head, all rational thought fled my mind leaving only the image of a hurt and dying Bella.

"No!" I screamed.

I didn't even feel Emmett pull me up. "Edward… she could still be alive."

"We have to go," Jasper interrupted, looking just as pained as I was. He knew my feelings, and because of his powers, my brother couldn't help but feel it too. Jasper has had enough guilt; I didn't want him to feel anymore. "The local authorities are on their way, I can hear their sirens."

But I couldn't think… I couldn't lose her. Not when I just found her again.

"Bella"

* * *

(Bella's POV)

I shouldn't be surprised to find that I had company. It was certainly better company than the alternative so I had little to complain about.

"Hi guys," I uttered painfully. My skin healed completely a few miles back but my insides felt like they've been put through a blender and its taking its damn time putting the pieces back together.

Rosalie and Alice shot up from two chairs and before I could get another word in, I was being suffocated by the adorable pixie's heartfelt embrace.

"A... Alice… I can't… breathe."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Alice let me go, thank God. "I was just so happy to see you alive and it's been so long since I've hugged a human," she babbled before transitioning to another topic. "I've also been keeping tabs on the boys and Edward's out of his mind looking for you. I think he believes you're severely hurt."

I nodded, knowing better than anyone else how ridiculously neurotic Edward was when it came to my safety.

"I'm fine." After a quick swim at a nearby lake, I managed to get rid of the blood that coated my body. Damn, that water was cold. Taking my memory away from that place I looked to the other Cullen female. "Rosalie," I greeted with as much sincere politeness as I could muster.

"Bella," she returned, her arms crossed and devoid of emotion. She looked as radiant as always. "You look terrible." Ah, there was the Rosalie I remembered but then she did something unexpected it. Rosalie poured a glass of water and handed it to me. "You look exhausted."

I smiled weakly, slowly taking the glass from her hand and hoping the strain on my face wasn't too obvious as I felt something inside of me fix itself. I downed the glass in one gulp. "Thanks." I looked between the two and saw apprehension on their faces. "What?"

"You're hurt," Alice said, her voice cracking.

"No, I'm not," I answered a bit too quickly.

"You never were a good liar," Rosalie added matter-of-factly.

Against my will, irritation flared because my current predicament wasn't something I was comfortable to talk about, least of all with them. "I'm fine. See." I showed them my hands and arms and even did a little twirl to prove my point. "It's all good."

The two outrageously beautiful women just kept on staring at me.

"You look like you haven't aged a day."

Of all the people to notice, it had to be freaking Rosalie.

"I have a good cosmetologist."

This time it was Alice who looked doubtful. Then her attention was averted to my front door and a second later it burst open to reveal two big familiar men and a frantic Edward close behind.

"We couldn't find…" Edward stopped when he saw me, and like Alice, he crossed the room so quickly that I couldn't react fast enough to stop him from taking me into his cold but welcoming embrace. "You're alive." I can feel his body shake with relief. "Thank God."

I stiffened at our first full bodily contact, the memories of our past bubbled to the surface of my mind and for a moment, I let myself get lost in them until the more rational part of me realized this was much too close for comfort. Except I knew, without a doubt, that he needed this. This affirmation that I was alive and not a corpse somewhere.

"Are you okay?" His familiar hands gently cradled my face. "Are you hurt anywhere?"

I gulped, shaking my head silently. My internal injuries have healed now. I've learned that even though my skin healed faster, it took a little more time for the damages inside of me to catch up.

It took several minutes of subdued silence before Jasper explained where they'd been. I wasn't surprised that he and Emmett were on the lookout for vampires in the city but it never occurred to me that the deaths caused by Victoria were newborns running amuck. I listened with half an ear during certain details because I already knew what happened.

"You're blood was on that mountain," Edward finally pointed out.

I thought fast. "You're mistaken."

"Not with you."

"I'm not saying that it wasn't my blood, but maybe it was put there. I've donated blood before so maybe that's where it came from. It's certainly not from me." This must be what it felt like when Edward lied to me about not loving me. It's utterly excruciating.

"Where were you all day?" Rosalie queried.

"I don't answer to anyone, let alone you," I said glaringly back to Rosalie."But if you all must know, I was out jogging."

Emmett raised his eyebrows. "For five hours?"

I touched my forehead in a pathetic attempt at showing a coming headache. "It was a long jog." I was lying through my teeth and it didn't take supernatural powers for them to see it but it would be a cold day in hell before I tell them something I'm not ready to. Besides, Victoria is my problem and I intend to see it through.

"Bella, we can't help you if you keep evading us at every turn," Edward pleaded; exasperation and dread filled his voice. "Please, let us help you. Victoria is intent on killing you, and if she can't do it directly she might even go after your father."

That hit its mark and I reacted on impulse. "If she so much touches my father I'll take out more than just her arm."

There was a collective gasp of shock, and to my surprise it was Emmett that recovered first and howled with laughter, which was quickly followed by a beaming proud brotherly smile. "Our Bella? Our sweet little Bella battled it out with Victoria? Damn, girl!" He reached for me, "Give me a high five."

I eyed him wearily.

"Oh, you know you want to."

I shook my head trying to hide my own smile and gave him what he wanted.

Jasper was the second to say anything. "Where did you get the hardware?" It was a practical basic question and one that didn't bother me to give an answer to. Besides, he was a former Civil War soldier, I expected as much.

"I'm former military."

It was Edward's turn to finally say something. "You're what?" he said as if my first answer wasn't elaborate enough.

"You're a soldier, Bella?" Alice's soft whimsical voice cut in.

"No actual combat experience, I work mainly in foreign relations," I explained. "You know, dealing with diplomats, attending official parties, smoothing out an otherwise volatile situation."

"I never would've guessed that of you," Rosalie commented to my continued surprise. She and I never got along, a lot of it due to our difference of opinions when it came to certain subjects yet some of her actions tonight has been off-putting to say the least.

"So what happened up on the mountain?"

I sighed but knew there was no getting around this particular subject. "Victoria sent me a rather enlightening gift, and after I read the papers this morning I knew a vampire was involved. She was the only one I knew that had something against me so I took the initiative and ambushed her before she killed anyone else."

"You could've gotten yourself killed," Edward admonished that did nothing but raise my ire.

"Yeah, because I was really looking forward to becoming her all-you-can-eat buffet," I replied sarcastically in an attempt to quell my anger except it only made things worse with Edward. "Look, Victoria is killing innocent people because of me, so excuse me if I'm feeling a might bit sensitive about it."

"What about the blood?" he asked obviously avoiding my not-too-subtle sarcasm about the buffet.

"I told you, blood donation. I used it to hopefully magnify my scent so she could find me faster." That was one lie I'm going to stick with.

"We need to get you somewhere safe." He said it as a statement, no argument brooked. My ex has another thing coming if he expects me to blindly follow his orders. I'm not eighteen anymore, technically anyway but he didn't need to know that yet.

"You guys do what you all need to do, but I'm staying in the city."

"I can make you go," Edward threatened.

"Edward," Alice spoke softly.

"This is your life we're talking about, Bella," he pleaded once again, his fierce determination falling at every sign of my rebuke. It broke my heart to go against him when all he wanted to do was protect me yet I still managed to fight him.

"When you left, you abdicated all rights to challenge me against any decisions I make on behalf of my life. I'm not doing this to hurt you but respect my decision on this, Edward."

He ran out of the room in frustration, but I knew he wouldn't be far away.

"We'll go make sure he doesn't do anything stupid," Jasper said, taking Emmett with him while I was left alone with Alice and Rosalie once again.

"I didn't mean to hurt him," I say to them honestly.

"We know, Bella," Alice said, understanding. "I just wish I knew the outcome. I can't seem to read your future as well as I used to," she added dejectedly and my heart broke for her as well. It seemed like my change from mortality to immortality at eighteen blocked her ability to see into my future. Another unexpected loss I have to deal with.

"Look, I'm tired. I'm going to get some sleep."

"We'll be here to make sure Victoria doesn't make an unexpected appearance," Rosalie said and it left me wondering how in the world she became my guardian angel all of the sudden. Frankly, at the moment, I was too exhausted to ask. Tomorrow would be a good time to start.

**To be continued…**


	6. Chapter 5: Interlude

**Title**: Forever Days

**Author**: Nadia Mack

**Disclaimer**: I own nothing, which is a tragedy.

**Rated**: K (So far at least)

**Summary**: One night, Bella's life changes.

**Author's Notes**: So I finally have Internet at home now but with Twilight's release, I got a bit distracted with all the news and video interviews. My apology again for this massive delay in updates. And thank you everyone for taking an interest in the story and for leaving comments when you can. This particular chapter is sort of relaying the foundation of Edward and Bella's relationship so I hope you approve.

* * *

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**Chapter 5**: Interlude

(Edward's POV)

Since the moment I realized that I loved her, the natural instinct inside me to protect her had become both my strength and my greatest weakness.

I was watching her now, sleeping. After my disastrous attempt to keep her safe (yet again) fell on deaf ears, I was forced to content myself by submitting to her request.

Leaving her at the hands of fate.

At the same time, I couldn't in all honesty uproot her life all over again, even if it tore me inside knowing that every second she spent in this city gives our enemy another second closer to endangering her.

But what could I do?

Neither myself nor the rest of my family could persuade her to leave. Bella wanted to end this fight against Victoria here and now but I'm too afraid it'll cost her the very life I swore to protect.

Her humanity.

Even at the cost of the human lives Victoria had already killed and turned, nothing mattered to me but her, and that fact only served to remind me of the selfish creature that I really am.

Suddenly, Bella mumbling and turning in her sleep startled me out of my regret-filled thoughts.

"Bella," I whispered but she continued to be trapped in her subconscious, uttering words I couldn't understand despite the multiple languages I knew fluently. I listened closely, wanting desperately to comfort her… to touch her… her words, though indecipherable in meaning, was some form of Native American dialect in familiarity.

It baffled me why she was speaking this in her sleep, but it was a question I couldn't ask because I knew she didn't wholeheartedly trust me. Another fact that tore at me.

Yet the pull to touch her tempted me against reason. Like gravity, the physical yearning to touch her was demanding.

"Edward?"

I looked into her soft brown and surprisingly unquestioning eyes as she gazed up me. I almost cursed out loud for being caught except only my silence remained.

"You're in my room." It wasn't a question.

I gulped, unsure how to proceed. "Don't be upset," I said hoping against hope that she didn't kick me out.

"I'm not," she replied softly, her eyelids opening wider. The moon's light from the window blanketed her like a magical ethereal beauty.

My mouth opened. "You were having a nightmare… I think."

A look of confusion graced her features but she recovered quickly. "How long have you been watching me?" she asked, evading my words smoothly.

I couldn't lie to her. Not ever again could I ever lie to her. "Since you fell asleep," I admitted most pathetically. "I didn't want to be far from you. And I apologize about my actions earlier. I was… concerned for you. I'm just afraid that if I look away for even a second, you'd disappear… or worst." My fist clenched tightly at the mere thought of her getting hurt or dying.

"You haven't changed one bit," she said. At first her words hit a nerve but when I looked at her and found that there was no trace of sarcasm in her remark, I smiled. Tentatively.

"I know I can be irrational…" at this she raised an eyebrow but I continued not wanting to be dissuaded. "I've only ever wanted to protect you, Bella. Especially from myself." I paused, searching for the right words. "The whole time we were together back in Forks, I knew it was dangerous. That the more we were together; it would only amplify the danger around you. Please believe me when I say that I never wanted you hurt. That it was the last thing I ever wanted you to feel."

The look she gave me as I said this would have stopped my heart if it were capable of beating. Her eyes glistened as she held her breath, and I knew it was her will that kept any form of tears from falling.

Bella was always so much more stronger than I ever could be.

"You got around to doing it anyway," she said matter-of-factly and my heart sank further at the knowledge of what I did. "I shut down," she revealed, her composure faltering as every new bit of information about our time apart came through. There was more. She was editing the full events and as much as I both craved and feared for the truth, I let tell me in however form she deemed fit. "I went numb for a really long time. Dad tried to help but I just stopped caring. But then Jacob—"

"Jacob Black?" I cut in, a stab of jealousy enveloping me all of the sudden. An image of Ephraim Black's descendent appeared quickly in my mind. I attempted to squash my envy as best I could at the discovery.

"Yeah," she confirmed. "I guess he snapped me out of this dark hole I was in. We became closer friends after that," she added wistfully.

My hopes began to plummet even further.

"Oh."

"It wasn't like _that_," she said, emphasizing on the word 'that'. "I mean not at first… and I tried." She struggled to explain. "I really did try to make it work with him but… um…" she looked away from me and whispered, "He wasn't you either." My own words to her the other night in the park crossed my thoughts.

_None of them were you._

I gazed at her with all the love I hope she could see, but when I noticed her trying to keep her eyes opened, I knew any further talk between us had to wait until she was rested.

"Go back to sleep, Bella."

She shook her head stubbornly. "You're not the only one afraid to look away," she muttered tiredly. "If I close my eyes and you're not here when I wake up, I'd think this was just a dream."

I smiled with renewed hope and finally found the strength to touch her. When she didn't flinch away when I cradled her cheek with one hand, I let my thumb graze her smooth skin back and forth. Hell on earth didn't exist with me when I'm here with her like this.

"I'm not going anywhere, Bella."

She was losing her fight against sleep but she managed to hold my hand on her face by placing hers against it. "Promise?"

"I promise," I answered, meaning the words completely. "For as long as you'll have me, I'll never leave you ever again." It wasn't an option for me anymore. When we survive this fight against Victoria (and I can only believe that we will), whether she chooses to stay with me or go back to her life, if she still wanted me, I'd go wherever she would go. It was stupid of me to ever think I can stay away from her.

Once she succumbed to her slumber, I told her how much I love her and that I'll never stop and for the first time since I let my love go, I wished I could take her in my arms and fall asleep right along beside her.

* * *

(Bella's POV)

The light of the morning light peaked into the sides of the curtain in my room's window, and I woke wondering if I had ever closed them last night. It wasn't long until I realized that at some point in the evening, I hadn't been alone.

Edward had been with me.

I sat up abruptly, scourging my room for any sign of the inhuman man I never stopped loving and felt my chest tighten at the thought that it was all just a dream.

"I promised you I wouldn't leave," a familiar voice said nearby.

My head spun to the entrance of my door and found Edward holding a tray of what looked like food.

"You made me breakfast," I said practically dumbfounded. So last night hadn't been a dream and the knowledge that he was actually still here blasted a profound feeling of exultation inside me. A feeling I thought I would never ever feel again since that fateful day in the meadow.

Edward smiled sheepishly. "Alice helped, too. Even Rosalie."

"Hmm."

I'm going to have to chat with Rosalie one-on-one to find out what her game was. Her sudden pleasantness toward me was totally out-of-character from the woman I knew back in Forks and it made me defensive to discover her motives. There had to be one, there was just no explanation to it.

Then something occurred to me. "How did you know I would be awake? I thought Alice could barely see my future."

Edward sighed worriedly. "She didn't. We were kind of making educated guesses as to when you'd wake up. I wanted your breakfast fresh off the stove so after two tries, Alice and Rosalie practically forced me out of the kitchen and took shifts." Then he grinned and I couldn't stop the flutter in my stomach even if I tried. "It was a team effort."

I chuckled lightly, feeling embarrassed. "I should go and thank them."

"With our kind of hearing, they know so don't move. You're not leaving that bed until you eat this. Even the juice is freshly squeezed."

"It smells _divine_." I laughed at his disguised look of agreement on his face. I knew the smell of human food was as grotesque to him as it is to me when I smell blood. It was a good thing that I've mostly gotten over that.

Odd, how this domestic scene between us suddenly felt comfortable. Last night's half-conscious impromptu talk must have done wonders to my resolve in keeping my distance. It was hard to stay mad at a man whose only offense was to protect my well-being, no matter how complicated he made it out to be.

Once he took the tray over to me I devoured it with fervor. I was famished and it showed yet Edward didn't seem to care. He looked utterly content just quietly watching me eat. By the time I was done, the pleasant silence was interrupted by a gruff voice that could only mean one thing.

My father was here.

I looked at Edward fearfully. "How bad is it?"

He sighed first before rolling his eyes. "It continuously amazes me how your mind works." I gave him a look that meant _what_ exactly. "There are monsters out there intent to kill you but facing an angry father and your spine shivers as if the end of the world is near."

"My spine is not shivering!" I said defensively. I could hear Charlie faintly through the door arguing with Rosalie. Where was Alice when I needed her? She was usually the best one to quickly get into Charlie's good graces with ease. "Seriously, though. What's he thinking?"

Edward stiffened in place. "He's just worrying about you, as any father who loved their child should." But I could tell right away that my father had remembered something particular about how I dealt with the Cullen's removal from Forks and it was just now that Edward was finally discovering just how devastated I was when he left.

The following months that occurred is not something I would want to put in his conscience or even describe into further detail but it seemed like it was too late. There was no removing those images from his mind now.

"Water under the bridge, Edward. It happened a long time ago." It was understandable that Charlie still felt that way but unnecessary. I was no longer that person even if my feelings for Edward remained stubbornly constant through the years.

"I should… you know… break up the party before he barges in here."

"That would be wise," he acknowledged rather stiffly. Edward turned away to give me some privacy as I dressed quickly. Even though nothing untoward happened, I didn't want my father thinking the worst… or best depending on one's perspective.

When I exited my room, I greeted my father with a smile. "I dad!" I added in a quick kiss on his cheek for added measure. For a moment, he looked appeased until Edward appeared a moment later from my room and any headway I made with Charlie flew quickly out the window.

I glared at my ex who only looked back at me with a shrug.

"Good morning, Chief Swan," Edward greeted ever so politely. "It's a pleasure to see you again."

"What the hell are you doing here?" My father returned harshly.

"Dad, please don't start," I pleaded before turning to Rosalie and thanked her for breakfast. I was raised to be polite so it couldn't be helped. "The Cullen's are living in Juneau now but they're here visiting Alice and Jasper. We were just catching up on old times."

Charlie didn't seem to hear me because he was staring daggers at one specific person. To Edward's credit, he took it in stride and let my father show his anger the only way a cop with his quietly internal emotions knows how, with narrowed eyes and postured hostility.

This is assuredly far worse than dealing with Victoria and her homicidal ways.

I quickly assessed my father's jacket.

"What are you doing, Bella?" Charlie asked in a disgruntled tone but I ignored him.

"Checking to see if you have any firearms on you." I could be imagining things but I could swear I heard Rosalie smother a laugh. I didn't bother to look her way to confirm my suspicions as I attempt to get Charlie's attention away from Edward. "Where's Alice?"

"She's with Jasper," Rosalie answered promptly. "They're meeting up with Emmett to get something to eat."

It could be a lie but I'm not one to question it. The three were likely hunting the wildlife that encompassed Alaska's vast wilderness so it would probably be best that their thirst were alleviated now considering the volatile tension that erupted in my hotel room since Charlie arrived.

"You and me need to talk, Bells," Charlie said sternly.

I should have expected this coming but I had hoped he'd gotten over the abandonment issues I felt when the Cullen's left so unexpectedly. For God's sake, it was ten years ago!

"You need to let it go, Dad." Then I added gently, "I did." For the most part anyway.

* * *

(Edward's POV)

"You need to let it go, Dad," Bella said to her father with a gentleness I often observed when she spoke to Renee, her mother. "I did." Had our kind been susceptible to wooden stakes as the core myths of vampirism often described, Bella certainly knew how to wedge it into my chest further.

_I couldn't get Chief Swan to calm down before you two came out, Edward._

Rosalie's thoughts in the past couple of nights had surprised me. I expected a full blown argument with her after Alice or Carlisle explained what was happening here, but instead of the usual negativity that surrounded her opinion of me and Bella, she had been remarkably helpful and her mind relatively behaved.

_That bastard thinks he can just come back into her life and expect everything to remain the same… that low-life son of a bitch! I'm going to..._ Chief Swan's thoughts were drifting dangerously close to criminal, and I couldn't blame him for his justified hatred of me. It was especially hard not to physically react to the images of Bella that spilled into his memories after my family left Forks.

I couldn't even describe properly what it felt to see Bella that way.

"_I shut down."_ She had said to me last night. _"I went numb for a really long time."_

I swallowed hard seeing the woman I loved with my entire being slowly deteriorate as she moved through the motions of her life with no interest or feeling at all. The spark and intelligence in her eyes were gone. It was like looking at a... walking dead.

I shuddered at the description. The urge to break something quickly felt primal.

My forced selflessness was all for naught if all it caused her was pain and the only thing that kept me from throwing myself into a pit of lava right at this moment was knowing that Bella had survived that.

How could something that should have been right feel so wrong?

Bella's voice quickly carried me out of my moody thoughts. "Dad, they're just here for a few days," she said to her father and I could hear Chief Swan grudgingly relaxing. I would have let out a relieved sigh at Bella's triumph if it had not been for my own fear that if I moved in any way, it might set him off again.

_Breathe, Edward. You look like a freaking statue standing there,_ Rosalie threw at me with her thoughts.

Oh, right. Breathing. Because that's what a human does.

Rosalie rolled her eyes. _Two medical degrees yet you're absolutely worthless at the moment. Perhaps you should think about taking a minor in human social behavior if you ever get the inkling of going back to school again._

I glared at her to stop but she merely sent me a sweetly smile that made me want to pick a fight with her, except that wouldn't bode well with Chief Swan's already low opinion of me so I stayed put. She may be acting nice and accommodating when it came to Bella now but that didn't stop her from throwing jibes at me. Where was Jasper when I needed his abilities?

I settled for ignoring her and focused instead on the unique non-verbal communication occurring between father and daughter.

_Bella, be reasonable_, Chief Swan pleaded in his head and as if Bella could read minds too, she sighed in reaction.

"Fine!" she scowled. "Have it your way." Bella reached for her jacket and gave Rosalie and I, especially me, a look that said fairly loudly to back off.

I would really like to know how her father got her to acquiesce so easily. Perhaps if I was excruciatingly polite, he'll tell me. The man rarely thinks outside his likes and dislikes and so far, I fall in the latter so I suppose asking him is out of the question.

Once the door shut, I kept a light ear out to make sure that they were both safe while at the same time giving them some privacy.

"That was interesting," Rosalie spoke out loud. "Doesn't take a mind reader to see that man loathes you."

I growled. "I'm aware of that."

"Lucky for you that she's an adult now."

"Cut to the chase, Rosalie," I snapped irritably.

_Bella's changed_, she answered in her thoughts.

"I know that."

_I didn't mean the obvious. Something about her has changed. I can't figure out what it is but I'm the last person she'd confide in._

I was taken aback by Rosalie's genuine thoughts of concern. Where did this come from? But before I could question her, Bella was back inside the room.

"Is everything okay with your father?"

"Dad will get over it," Bella waved dismissively. "After hearing the news yesterday morning about the killings, he wanted to check on me. He and Sue are cutting their vacation a couple of days short and will be flying back this afternoon. I told him I'd be fine for two more days."

"That didn't sit well with him."

Bella shrugged. "Fathers will be fathers."

I nodded, pushing the protective instinct of forcing Bella on the flight right alongside her father away for her safety when Alice's thoughts suddenly skipped through my mind.

_We're back._

"Alice and the others are here. I'm going to go see if Emmett and Jasper found anything last night." I hesitated, disliking the idea of leaving her.

"Oh, stop it, you idiot!" Rosalie's voice suddenly flared. "It's not like she's completely defenseless. Go see them, I'm not going anywhere without Bella."

Surprisingly, that appeased me somewhat.

"Okay."

* * *

(Bella's POV)

Once Edward was gone, I looked at Rosalie with a remarkable amount of interest. I'm beginning to think I've finally gone insane.

"What are you playing at, Rosalie?" I asked her boldly.

Rosalie smirked in return. "I can't play the game when you're holding all the cards." The beautiful vamp crossed her arms and stared at me eye to eye. "You're hiding something," she deduced accurately, but I knew from my standpoint she had no idea what it was.

And I'm under no obligation to explain, although I won't lie to her about it.

"Yes, I am."

**To be continued…**


	7. Chapter 6: Half Truths

**Title**: Forever Days

**Author**: Nadia Mack

**Disclaimer**: I own nothing, which is a tragedy.

**Rated**: K+ (There's definitely sexuality this chapter but nothing really overt)

**Summary**: One night, Bella's life changes.

**Author's Notes**: I would go into Rosalie's POV but I honestly don't feel confident enough to pull her off with any justice. This chapter is a rather turning point between Edward and Bella. They still have a lot of hurdles to work through, but they'll definitely be trying to work it through together. Bella, naturally, is being stubborn. Turnabouts fair play. lol Sorry for the wait everyone. Hope you like it.

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**Chapter 6**: Half-Truths

(Bella's POV)

Rosalie took an unprecedented intake of breath while I considered my options. She seemed surprised that I answered her point blank but that hardly meant I was going to reveal the exact nature of my change. It was only that I had one.

We were never friends to begin with. Confrontational, hot-tempered and regularly aloof, Rosalie nearly rivaled Edward's stubbornness so I knew I had to appease her somehow before she goes off on her own and starts making up her own assumptions, thus making Edward suspicious and I certainly didn't need that right now.

"Well… are you going to explain yourself," Rosalie continued, arms still crossed and one foot tapping on the floor waiting impatiently. For a decades old vamp, I would think they'd learned a little patience.

John Quincy Adams once said, _"Patience and perseverance have a magical effect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish."_ Too bad Rosalie didn't follow the same mind-set.

"I wouldn't want you to die of old age Bella before you get the chance to actually answer me," Rosalie sneered with continued impatience.

I let out a knowing grin debating whether to put her curiosity to rest or childishly let the carrot dangling. I opted for the dangling; fueling this weird but much needed adversarial camaraderie that my relationship with Rosalie seemed to suddenly carry.

"Well…" Rosalie pressed again.

I bit my lip. "I'm thinking."

"What's there to think about?" Rosalie stopped tapping her foot and was now pacing the floor. "It's been a troublesome decade and the last thing my family needs is more complications. You admitted you're hiding something, so what is it?"

"Contrary to popular belief, my life actually doesn't revolve around your family. To be honest, it hasn't been about Vampires at all."

I could tell my answer confused her and I almost felt a pang of regret for not just coming out and say it, but I suppose a part of me knew that once the secret was out, it would be Edward I'd be confiding to, not Rosalie or any other Cullen… well, perhaps Carlisle or maybe Alice if things didn't feel so awkward between us right at the moment. Even when a large part of me believed that Edward stopped loving me, I couldn't even share the truth with Jacob. My best friend.

"Look," I started again. "You and I never got along so I don't expect that to—"

"Stop right there," Rosalie cut me off before I could finish and I looked to her in surprise. "I never had an aversion to the idea of having another sister, especially if it had been you." Now that caught my attention. "Our lives..." she stopped mid-sentence. "No, not lives. Our existence; was not our choice. Don't get me wrong, I love Carlisle, and he's the father I wished I had in my human life. But if I had a choice, I would never have chosen this and it pissed me off back then that you, someone so young and promising would throw all that away for an eternity in damnation."

Had Rosalie revealed this to me when I was eighteen, I would have still, in the end, chosen to be with Edward, damnation and all but after everything that's happened, I could finally see a glimpse of where her resentment for me stemmed from. It made the sting of her past rejection feel a little less biting.

"And truthfully, at the very beginning, I'm vain enough to admit to being envious that it was you that Edward chose, and believe me when I say there was a lot to choose from." I raised my eyebrows at that and chuckled.

"You expect me to believe your initial hatred for me was jealousy? You, the most beautiful woman I've ever seen jealous of a naïve awkward average looking teenager who couldn't walk onto a flat surface without tripping on something?" Maybe she was out of her mind and I'm just simply an anomaly. "Oh, come on!" I scoffed at the ridiculousness of it.

"Edward was right," Rosalie said sighing. "You really don't see yourself all that well."

"Okay, since when did this conversation become about vanity, let alone mine?"

Rosalie ignored me and moved to sit on a chair. "If you don't mind, I'd like to share something personal with you." I nodded cautiously because I was just too curious for my own damn good.

"Okay."

From there, Rosalie shared with me the human memories she had, starting with a brief overview of what her family was like before meeting her then-fiancée, Royce King. It was a long tragic story that I honestly didn't expect coming from her. She spared me the details that would have otherwise had me cringing, and I silently thanked her for that. It was one thing to imagine her nightmares inflicted on a stranger, but this was Rosalie, and her human to vampire image stuck to my mind like some horrible horror flick as the men that brutalized her without conscience or remorse.

Her story took another unforeseeable turn when she described how she first met Emmett, dying from a bear attack. He reminded her of her best friend's child, and with a will that rivaled Carlisle's, Rosalie carried him away and asked that he change him. It all seemed so surreal and so unlike the woman I know.

"Why did you tell me this?"

"Because if it's immortality you still want, I want you to go into it with your eyes open."

I inhaled deeply, quelling the urge to blurt out 'too late'. "My want back then to become a vampire had little to do with immortality and had everything to do with Edward."

"That is naïve, you know that right?"

I chuckled humorlessly. "I loved him so much," I revealed quietly. "I could barely describe what it felt like when you all just up and left." I paused for a moment before adding; "I wasn't myself for a long time." Then some ancient Native American spirit decided to grant me immortality for saving the life of his descendent, and for that, I had no other choice but to wake up from my numbed state and start living life as best I could.

Rosalie's voice pierced through my heavy-laden thoughts. "You're really not going to tell me, are you?"

At the very least, I owed her to a little explanation, no matter how obtuse it sounded. "There are things about me that has changed, you're right about that. Whether it's a good or bad thing is open to interpretation."

Rosalie's eyes narrowed. "That's cryptic, especially coming from you."

I shrugged. "Lot's of practice."

"Fine," Rosalie huffed. "Keep your secrets, it'll only be a matter of time until we find out."

"I know."

That was the truth.

* * *

(Edward's POV)

As hesitant as I was leaving Rosalie and Bella behind, I knew I had to grant Rosalie her moment to speak to Bella. My thoughts having been about Bella the last few days, it hardly mattered what Rosalie wanted so long as I was with her. By the time I came back, Bella was in the shower and it didn't take long for me to figure out what Rosalie spoke to her about.

"You told her?" I spoke clearly surprised. Rosalie was not one to share the details of her past life let alone her transformation and the subsequent events that happened afterwards.

"You two are more _sickeningly_ in love now than when you were ten years ago, so I thought I'd give her some friendly advice."

Then I saw the image in her mind and I shook my head adamantly. "That's not going to happen." I couldn't believe that even Rosalie was acknowledging that it was better if Bella became one of us. A monster. "How can you even think that? You most of all?"

Rosalie threw her hands up in the air with a mixture of surrender and agitation. "What other course could there be for her?" she said then listed dramatically that "Victoria is intent on killing her. You're intent on staying with her. I'm sorry Edward, but she's not going to live forever."

I scowled at the facts that lay bare before me.

"You've lost a decade with her already," she added, tempting me with yet another incentive to turn Bella but I had to believe we could make this work without damning her to hell. "And you've continuously reminded the rest of us how fragile a human she is, but that's not going to stop nature from taking her life at any moment. I'm surprised she's lived this long, frankly."

"Stop it," I urged adamantly. I didn't want to hear this, whether in her mind or out loud. "Bella's going to live a long life."

"But will she be happy?"

I groaned in frustration just as Bella stepped out of the bathroom. Fresh out of the shower, she was dressed in a low-key tight-fitting blue jeans and a white v-neck blouse that showcased her beautiful neckline. Her hair, lighter and longer than I remembered, was still wet. The combination of them all sent a rush of desire and need inside of me that had nothing to do with her blood.

Beside me, Rosalie rolled her eyes. Her thoughts noted my sudden discomfort while accurately targeting the source.

"We… should get going," I stuttered slightly.

"Right," Bella nodded, crossing the room to grab her jacket. I quickly made my way to her side and helped her into her coat. A habit that she didn't seem to mind coming from me. "You ready?"

"Yeah."

* * *

(Edward's POV continued…)

There was something wrong.

On the outside, I didn't sense any danger either from the thoughts of the people we passed and the surrounding area or from Alice's visions. It seemed Victoria had disappeared, likely recouping from her lost limb.

No, this feeling I had was a little closer to home, and it took the form of the one most important to me.

I stared at Bella in the front passenger seat. Much to my annoyance, Alice was driving leaving me no choice but to sit in the back while Rosalie, Jasper and Emmett took the other car that was trailing behind us.

Since we left her room, Bella had been extremely quiet. Quieter than I have ever seen her become. I didn't know what to make of it, and her closed mind only fueled my worry and frustration of the situation. Even her brief conversation with Alice in the beginning felt stilted. I can hear Alice's thoughts, her worries and confusion over this almost unrecognizable Bella next to her echoed my own.

I knew there were things she was keeping from me. That there were things in her life that I had missed and was not apart of, but it was becoming unbearable not knowing what was running through her mind and what secrets she was keeping so strongly from us.

From me.

And there are secrets. That much I was certain. My family and I are much too adept in the act of secrecy not to notice it in others. It's innately a part of our existence.

Carefully, I went through our previous conversations in my mind in detail.

Two things stood out. Her fight with Victoria along with her seemingly unharmed state, and the nightmare I unintentionally witnessed when I went into her room last night to be near her.

The first could have been luck that she survived unscathed, yet my own instincts couldn't rationalize the possibility. Victoria is ruthless and almost methodical. Bella outsmarting her surprised me. Not because it couldn't be done, but because humans in general were just too breakable and have less in their physical arsenal to prevent a vampire attack from harming them if one happened to be the prey.

To Victoria, Bella is a lot more than that.

Prey.

Prize.

Revenge.

I shuddered at the thought of my love being subjected to Victoria's sadistic torture.

Then there was her nightmare. I couldn't believe that I'd forgotten about it. The mumbled phrases was still unrecognizable to me, and for some strange reason, I couldn't even recall the words. With my perfect memory, mimicking it wouldn't have been a problem but as I tried to remember, the more it escaped me. It almost felt… mystical.

It was as if it was not meant to be repeated.

Lifting my head to rest against the rear headrest, I sighed.

"Is something wrong?" Bella suddenly asked, her eyes staring into mine through the rear view mirror.

"Nothing that can't wait."

"Oh, okay."

Then it was quiet again. It could've been the perfect opening to start firing away with questions, but then again there was no guarantee she'd give an answer. Or at least the answer he wanted.

* * *

(Bella's POV)

"That was a total waste of time," I said entering the dimly lit room we were staying at.

Edward flipped the switch of the small but modest little motel room outside of the city. At some point in the day, we decided to split into twos to cover more ground. Convenient for the rest of the Cullens but inconvenient to one lone Swan. I suspected Alice was to blame but I was no mind reader so I kept her near obvious ploy to myself. That was until we reached our room and I groaned out loud.

"What's wrong?" Edward asked, concerned.

"One bed," I pointed out, my eyes narrowing toward a specific area of the room.

"Yes, about that…" he trailed off guiltily.

"I thought you requested for a room with two beds. I only see one. Why do I only see one bed, Edward?" We may have cleared the air with our previous complicated history and have made strides at becoming friends again, but I was certainly not in the mindset to jump into whatever it is we had right now with the threat of Victoria hovering over our heads.

"The lady said all the rooms with multiple beds were taken."

My narrowed eyes turned to him. "I was with you the entire time, Edward. She never said that."

"Well, she was thinking it."

I rolled my eyes.

"Fine. Take the chair, the beds _mine_." I was too tired and irritable to argue. I just really wanted to kill Victoria and put that part of my past behind me.

"Yes, ma'am," he acquiesced with a smile.

I returned his devilishly handsome smile with a singular glare, completely unamused. God, it's wrong for a man to be so insufferably charming and irritating at the same time. So like the coward that I was, I made a beeline to the bathroom, grabbing my bag in the process to take a nice long shower. I took my time inside; hoping the tension in my body would subside for every second I spent beneath the warm water.

It's funny how time becomes that much more precious these past few years. Edward and the rest of the Cullens made the passing of time seem almost nonexistent. Perhaps because everything they've known in their human lives was dead and gone, and time afterwards becomes a none-entity.

Like breathing.

If so, it's an awfully sad way to live.

I like these moments, even if they're painful. It makes me feel like I'm still a part of something real and it's not simply because I happen to exist. Maybe I really am a masochist.

Pushing away from further thoughts of self-inflicted pain, particularly the emotional ones, I abandoned the comfort of the warm bath and slowly got dressed. Instead of the nightgown I normally wear to bed (I really didn't want to send any wrong signals but I sense that the attempt would be futile) I opted for my dark blue silk pajamas. I got them in Japan. Wonderful fabric, but I'll never admit that out loud. Lord knows what Alice would do with that kind of information. Shopping, to this day, was still not something I enjoyed but I knew it was necessary.

When I finally stepped out of the bathroom, Edward sat at the far corner of the room reading a newspaper.

"Anything new?"

"Another missing person's report," he answered grimly. "Mid 30's, male Caucasian, a local. No known relatives but plenty of friends. He's been missing for two days."

I nodded. If the body wasn't found, it was likely that another newborn was made. The thought that all this was occurring because of me left a bitter taste in my mouth. So many innocent lives lost, and it was all due to an insignificant human being.

That's me, by the way.

"It doesn't make any sense. It's almost like she's… fishing."

Edward looked up apparently started by my words. "Say that again."

"I think maybe we've been going about this wrong. We've been searching the city for newborns but we haven't been able to track even one. What if she's been creating them but she's holding them down somewhere?"

"Newborns are strong, Bella. There's just no way for Victoria to hold them together in one place without causing a riot."

"I've worked military and believe me, we've got cells that can hold vampires just fine if the government ever got wind that you're kind exists. If a person was smart enough, which I know your kind naturally is, a modified bomb shelter could do the trick. You don't like fire, so an electrical fence or wall could act as a barrier. It's really all in the engineering when you really think about it."

A look I couldn't describe accurately came across his features. "The way your mind works has always amazed and frightened me at the same time, Bella."

I shrugged, not wanting to dwell on his words too much.

"I'm going to sleep. Goodnight, Edward."

"Goodnight, Bella."

I didn't see the sad look on his face when my eyes closed in what I hoped would be a dreamless slumber.

* * *

(Edward's POV)

She didn't talk in her sleep but I knew she was dreaming. Her head swayed back and forth throughout the night while I sat beside her, helpless. The truth that I couldn't fight the nightmares that haunted her dreams pained me.

My fists clenched tightly together above the covers where her body was mere inches from my grasp.

I wanted to hold her. To give myself to her in some way hoping that maybe it would help her sleep better. I knew I was deluding myself into believing that we were well on our way to being together again, but a man could hope, can he?

But then suddenly she shot up and my hands instinctively came to her sides.

"Bella, are you all right?"

Her breathing was heavy, her heart erratic, but it was her eyes that nearly broke me. They glistened with tears. Tears teetering at the edge but somehow, she managed to keep them from falling.

"Bella," I repeated again, rubbing her arms up and down and I hoped that it soothed her in some way.

Her hand slowly lifted to touch my face, and when it did, I held my breath. She searched me not with her eyes, but with her soft fingers. It was like she was blind to my image as her fingers traced my jaw line, my eyes, the length of my nose until she reached my lips.

She inhaled deeply.

"Kiss me," she spoke softly.

I couldn't even blink. "What?"

"Kiss me, Edward."

She was vulnerable, I knew she was but when she asked, I obeyed. There was nothing I wanted more so I gave it to her. I'd give her anything.

Ever so slowly, I let my lips finally touch hers, and when it did, an eruption of another kind occurred.

* * *

(Bella's POV)

I was lost in haze between fantasy and reality. "Kiss me," I heard myself say and I barely heard his response when I pleaded with him once more. "Kiss me, Edward."

Every night I slept I'd dream of histories I didn't understand. Sounds of an old Native American language drifted in and out of my dreams only to wake up to find it fading from my consciousness.

Yet strangely, having Edward with me now seemed like the only thing that made sense in my senseless world.

So when his lips finally touched mine, I let myself go. I saw the past and present blur into one indefinable image.

Any fears or reservations I had about the future disappeared instantly, not even my fight against Victoria could stop this. My emotions were lost in the currents of overwhelming passion l shared with the man in my grasp. He was careful at first, and a part of me resented his gentleness when all I wanted was to feel all of him. My hands cupped his face before one arm snaked around his neck, urging him closer against me.

I felt his resistance crumble slowly and before I could let him think this situation through, I pressed myself harder against him.

"Bella… we… should…" he spoke between kisses but I shook my head in defiance. I wanted him. He wanted me. Too many things have happened between us that can stop the inevitable from happening.

"No," I managed to say. "I need this." My hands, which seemed to have a mind of its own, made its way to his waistline and began tugging his shirt from the confines of his trousers. "I need you," I panted. "Right now."

He groaned, succumbing to the same need that held her so strongly. His hands moved to the hem of _my_ shirt, lifting it over my head before he suddenly replaced my hands with his own and ripped his shirt open, dropping it unceremoniously to the floor.

My body battled against his. My softness to his hardness.

For one unspoken truth, they both stopped thinking all together. All there was now was this moment. Together.

I could feel his cool lips kissing me everywhere. My senses felt shockingly self-aware with every movement he made across my warm skin. His strong but gentle touch caressed the sensitive parts of my exposed body and I reacted as any warm-bloodied female did in the presence of a powerful male, by quickly removing the remaining layers that separated us.

When he moaned in obvious satisfaction when my lips trailed kisses along his chest, my heart nearly burst out of me. And when he was finally inside of me, not even the breach of my virginity stopped the onslaught of pleasure I felt, the dimness of my life for the past decade suddenly sparked back to life.

At that moment, the future didn't feel as scary as it once did.

**To be continued…**


End file.
